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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

American Dog Tick on Dandelion flower - Ick!

And now, a look at the dark side of prairie nature — an American Dog Tick (or Wood Tick) I saw today while I was out taking photographs of Dandelions and Early Blue Violets at the Condie Nature Refuge near Regina, Saskatchewan.

And yes, just seeing this image makes me itch! (I wore lovely light-coloured clothing and offered very little exposed skin to make myself as tick-safe as possible... If I look at this before I go out next time, though, I'll consider adding several additional helpings of DEET!)

The marking on this tick's back indicate that this one is a Dog Tick, aka Wood Tick, and given its size, it's likely a female. Dog ticks aren't the species that carry the agent that causes Lyme disease, though I'm not convinced that any good can come of a tick bite! (For more on that, see tick-borne diseases at the link to CDC, below.)

Black-legged Ticks, or Deer Ticks, are the culprit for Lyme disease — although SaskHealth says they represent only about three per cent of Saskatchewan's ticks. Overall, the risk of contracting Lyme disease here in Saskatchewan is apparently low — but not zero. (You can read more on the Government of Saskatchewan's Ministry of Health Lyme Disease page.)

(For those asking — no, I did not get any ticks or tick bites today. As far as I yet know... And I may now need a second shower. Seriously, I'm way too suggestible to read this stuff, even the parts I've written myself! So this is it! Time to post and share the joy with others.)What is this? An American Dog Tick, aka, a Wood Tick.

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Prairie creatures and scenes

Welcome to Prairie Nature, a collection of photographs of prairie birds, animals/wildlife, insects and scenery, primarily from Saskatchewan, Canada.

I hope you'll enjoy these, and — if you're here trying looking for a specific bird — I hope the images and links will help you identify it.

Many of these photos were taken in and around the Regina, SK, area. Other pictures were taken in the prairie grasslands in the southwest of the province, near the Montana border. (If you're interested in using any of these images in any way, please contact me.)

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The image of the elk on the hillside in this blog banner was taken in the Qu'Appelle Valley, somewhere east of Buffalo Pound Provincial Park and west of the city of Regina, in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada.